The question of “What is a tech company” comes down to how much software and its unique characteristics affects the company’s core business. | Continue reading
The current privacy debate is making things worse by not considering trade-offs, the inherent nature of digital, or the far bigger problems that come with digitizing the offline world. | Continue reading
The WeWork IPO is defined by audaciousness and excess, all of which is driven by unlimited access to capital. | Continue reading
Stratechery is on break the week of August 12. There will be no Weekly Article or Daily Updates. The Daily Update will resume on August 19. The full Daily Update posting schedule is here. All new s… | Continue reading
The question of what should be moderated, and when, is an increasingly frequent one in tech. There is no bright line, but there are ways to get closer to an answer. | Continue reading
The missing piece when it comes to the future of media are faceless publishers. Vox Media’s deal with The Ringer shows the way. | Continue reading
While I am (rightfully) teased about how often I discuss Aggregation Theory, there is a method to my madness, particularly over the last year: more and more attention is being paid to the power wie… | Continue reading
Jony Ive is leaving Apple: how it happened, Ive’s legacy, and what it means for Apple going forward. | Continue reading
Jony Ive has been “promoted”; is this one step towards retirement? | Continue reading
Libra is less about an immediate benefit to Facebook, and more about creating a world where companies like Facebook have the best chance to prosper. That is why Facebook gave up so much control. | Continue reading
Stratechery is on vacation the week of June 17. There will be no Weekly Article or Daily Updates. The Daily Update will resume on June 24. The full Daily Update posting schedule is here. All new su… | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Apple’s Audacity. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
A review of the potential antitrust cases against Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon suggests that only Google is vulnerable. | Continue reading
This year’s WWDC presented an Apple that was finally ready to move past the iPhone. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss China, Leverage, and Values. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
If there is a new tech cold war, it is one with shots fired over a decade ago, largely by China. The questions going forward are about both leverage and values. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Microsoft, Slack, Zoom, and the SaaS Opportunity. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Moderating user-generated content is hard: it is easier, though, with a realistic understanding that the Internet reflects humanity — it is capable of both good and evil. | Continue reading
At Google I/O, Google was the opposite of defensive: the company set out to make the case that its approach made for better products that makes people’s lives better | Continue reading
Explore Stratechery by: Concepts | Companies | Topics | Search Aggregation Theory Disruption Theory Incentives Technology and Society Evolution of Technology Media Strategy and Product Management | Continue reading
The Zoom and Slack IPOs show what Microsoft is missing in its growth story: a way to acquire new customers. | Continue reading
Uber’s S-1 raises more questions than it answers | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Disney and the Future of TV. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
TV is moving from a world where distribution dictates business models to one where business models need to fit the jobs consumers want done. That is the best way to understand Disney’s latest… | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss A Regulatory Framework for the Internet. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Regulators need to stop blindly regulating “the Internet” and instead understand that every part of the Internet stack is different, and only one part is suffering from market failure. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss the question of YouTube, why it’s similar and different from Facebook, and why engagement is both alluring and a potential pro… | Continue reading
AWS seems to have a dominant position in enterprise computing, but Google is trying to change the rules to favor their inherent strengths. | Continue reading
Apple’s Services Event generally made sense, even if most products weren’t ready to launch. It’s fair to wonder, though, if something important is being lost. | Continue reading
Stratechery is on vacation the week of March 18. There will be no Weekly Article or Daily Updates. The Daily Update will resume on March 25. All new subscriptions made since February 25, including … | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Where Warren’s Wrong. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Senator Warren’s proposal about how to regulate tech is wrong about history, the source of tech giant’s power, and the fundamental nature of technology itself. That doesn’t mean t… | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Facebook’s Privacy Cake. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Mark Zuckerberg’s announcement of A Privacy-Focused Vision for Social Networking is not some dramatic pivot: it is a growth opportunity for Facebook and a challenge for regulators. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss The Value Chain Constraint. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Companies succeed or fail not based on technology but rather according to their ability to integrate within their value chains. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss The Cost of Apple News. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Apple News is primed to offer a subscription bundle, but publishers should be wary of being Aggregated. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Spotify’s Podcast Aggregation Play. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Spotify is making a major move into podcasts, where it appears to have clear designs to be the sort of Aggregator is cannot be when it comes to music. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Apple vs Facebook (and Google!). Listen to it here. | Continue reading
The lesson of BuzzFeed is that dominant Aggregators like Facebook have no incentive to act against their self interest and support suppliers. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Netflix Flexes. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Netflix is an Aggregator, with a value chain that lets it drive demand, raise prices, and dismiss competition. | Continue reading
Amazon’s latest offering highlights the economic challenges facing open source companies — and Amazon should pay attention. | Continue reading
On Exponent, the weekly podcast I host with James Allworth, we discuss Apple’s Errors. Listen to it here. | Continue reading
Apple’s management made three errors that led to the restatement of revenue; those errors, though, suggest that the company’s business is in better shape than it appears. | Continue reading
Apple had mixed earnings: most of the world was great, but China was bad again. The reason is that in China WeChat matters more than iOS. | Continue reading